Wolves owner Glen Taylor said the team has already informed or is informing president of basketball operations David Kahn that it has picked up Kahn's option for next season.

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HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Not long ago, it seemed unlikely David Kahn would return to the Minnesota Timberwolves' front office.

In fact, Kahn was a league-wide laughingstock. Somewhere between the depths of Isiah Thomas and incompetence of Stu Jackson.

After all, he spent months waffling on whether to fire or keep Coach Kurt Rambis, even asking the former Laker to produce a homework assignment before ultimately giving him the pink-slip.

Kevin Love was unsure about inking an extension, while nobody knew if Ricky Rubio was worth the two-year wait and fifth overall pick in the draft lottery.

Yet, somehow, it worked. Rick Adelman brought stability to the sideline. Love, in large part because of his weight loss, took another step in the superstar pecking order. And Rubio lived up to expectations before sustaining a season-ending injury.

The Timberwolves were relevant for most of 2012 and in the playoff hunt for large stretches of the season. So Kahn deserves to be back in 2013. Who knows what happens next, though?

The former media scribe signed a three year deal in 2009 with two additional options for 2013 and 2014. All bets could be off if the Timberwolves fail to qualify for the playoffs next year.

Rick Adelman still looks like the favorite, but here’s the tricky part: I hear he wants at least $5 million a year, and five years -- not four -- guaranteed. Do the math and that’s at least $25 million, sports fans.

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Should the Minnesota Timberwolves spend $25 million over the next five seasons on Rick Adelman?

The answer: yes!

The Minnesota Timberwolves, who have spent the last half-decade making an annual jaunt to New Jersey for the draft lottery with the usual suspects of downtrodden NBA franchises, must change their culture.

Adelman, having made the playoffs in 16 of 20 seasons as a coach, brings credibility. And the veteran bench-boss has a relationship through his son with franchise-face Kevin Love, who the Wolves must appease to get his signature on a long-term extension.

Most importantly, signing Adelman to a big-ticket would show that owner Glen Taylor is willing to reach deep into his pocket and spend for top talent.

Taylor is still on the hook for the remaining 2-years and $4 million of Kurt Rambis’ pact, meaning, if Adelman were signed, the club would be spending $7 million annually on coaches through July of 2103.

Things are improving for the Timberwolves. All that’s left is to take the plunge and spend the money on Adelman.

"When you take on the triangle, you have to have your whole organization geared toward it," said Krause. "It takes a very specific kind of player to play in it. I saw the Minnesota guy hire Rambis, after he took two players in the draft who couldn’t possibly ever run the triangle. I have no idea if Rambis is a good coach or not, but Kahn screwed him right off the bat." He's referring to Ricky Rubio and Jonny Flynn, who are not natural fits, in yet another public black eye for Kahn.

If they're willing to pay $4-5 million a year, the pick clearly seems to be former Houston coach Rick Adelman, a candidate who meets all of Kahn's criteria for style of play, winning track record and the unspoken but important Kevin Love Factor.

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: This is a minor boondoggle by Minnesota Timberwolves standards, but a boondoggle nonetheless.

GM David Kahn has publicly stated owner Glen Taylor, who has never thrown money around, will dig deep into his pockets to pay the right coach.

Fat chance.

Can you see Taylor paying a top candidate $4-5 million annually for a minimum of three years, while also honouring the final $4 million owed to former coach Kurt Rambis?

So why would Kahn state that the Wolves would hire a pricey option like Rick Adelman, who enjoyed success with the Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings, and, most recently, the Houston Rockets?

Now the Wolves are stuck. If they hire a less expensive coach, for whatever reason, they’ll get criticized. If they hire an expensive coach, like Adelman, they’ll get criticized for wasting their limited resources on a bench-boss.

There’s one way Kahn, Taylor, and the Wolves can quiet the critics: start winning.--Oly Sandor.

But I can see, especially with Derrick Williams, Ricky Rubio, Mike Beasley, Anthony Randolph and Wes Johnson—all the way down the line to Lazar Hayward and myself, we have a slew of guys that can really have a bang in this league and make moves and have a lot of success.

I want to thank Kurt for his contributions to our franchise and wish him the best in his future endeavors," Kahn said in a statement announcing the firing. "His arrival signaled we were serious about building a championship-contending ballclub over the course of time. We have accumulated a solid nucleus of young talent with a bright future during the last two years. I am hopeful Kurt receives his share of the credit for helping develop that talent and his contributions are not forgotten as we become a better basketball team."

HoopsVibe`s Very Quick Call: They are perhaps the worst organization in the NBA –maybe in all of professional sports. And yes, that includes Donald Sterling's Los Angeles Clippers.

Take the Minnesota Timberwolves handling - or mishandling - of Coach Kurt Rambis, which is another hit against executive David Kahn and owner Glen Taylor.

Now Rambis was by all accounts a poor coach –regardless of the extremely limited hand he was dealt by Kahn. But Rambis –despite not winning much of anything- deserved better.

After all, Kahn kept Rambis twisting in the wind for months, not letting the former Los Angeles Laker know if he'd return to the Midwest for 2011-12 or join the unemployment line.

Kahn even gave Rambis homework, making him write a report on how he'd improve the team if brought back. Of course, Kahn knew his assignment was meaningless –the decision to fire Rambis was made long ago.

So what's the big deal about the Wolves mistreating Rambis? They simply hire another coach, right?

Well, wrong. Professional organizations treat employees with respect and decency -or, for lack of a better word, like professionals.

Kahn, Taylor, and their lackeys in the front office should model this for their players. Such an approach is necessary to win a championship or even qualify for the playoffs –and it starts at the top.

Consider Michael Beasley's recent marijuana citation. Sure, the troubled forward broke the law, but the Wolves, specifically Kahn, will surely be upset with Beasley's lack of respect for the organization.

This would be fair -except Kahn showed an utter lack of respect for Rambis.

The acts and circumstances may be different. But Kahn has no credibility to criticize Beasley for hurting the reputation of the Wolves. He has done this time-and-time again.

Rambis is the latest black eye for the Wolves. It won't, however, be the last on Kahn and Taylor's watch.

Only in Minnesota can executive David Kahn stay at the expense of Coach Kurt Rambis. Rumors suggest Kahn will keep his job as president of the Timberwolves, while Rambis will likely be pink-slipped at season’s end.

What were the odds of Kevin Love's double- double streak ending at 53 Sunday with a reeking, 100-77, thud -- six points, a dozen rebounds in 33 minutes -- against an escort service like the pedal-to-the-metal Warriors? Can Kurt Rambis and the Timberwolves' ball handling play-callers rationally explain how Love merely managed to get six shots -- making one and 4-of-6 free throws? you would presume Rambis possesses the presence of mind and the coaching aptitude to get Love a few more field goal attempts, if not a couple more baskets.

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the debacle that is the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Instead of focusing on improving, instead of focusing on becoming more competitive, the Timberwolves are focusing on Kevin Love’s double-double streak.

With all respect, who cares?

Sure, Love’s double-double streak is nice. It gives the Timberwolves, who are the league’s version of Siberia, some much-needed publicity.

But good teams focus on the one stat that matters: winning. Individual honours are either irrelevant or taken through the context of team success.

For instance, take Ray Allen becoming the NBA’s all-time three-point king. The Boston Celtics celebrated this achievement; however, it didn’t take away from their desire to win the Eastern Conference and home-court advantage.

Love’s double-double record was all the Timberwolves had, which is a problem. They need to focus on righting the ship and changing the club’s culture of losing.

This doesn’t necessarily mean firing Kurt Rambis and his staff of assistant coaches, and hiring another cheap selection of bench bosses to plug-up the problem.

Of course, blaming Rambis seems like the plan. After another horrendous season, the Timberwolves are looking for a scapegoat. And Rambis is perfect.

So why not point the finger at the Lakers’ former utility man for ruining the club’s one positive and everything else?

It doesn’t matter that he has a mediocre roster. It doesn’t matter that he has mostly young, inexperienced players. It doesn’t matter that the front office has failed to sign Spanish golden boy Ricky Rubio. And it doesn’t matter that just two years ago, Rambis was the first choice of the same front office that has now turned on him.

All signs are pointing to Rambis taking the fall. This is a cover for management, who have clearly committed their share of flaws, errors, and blunders.

If the Timberwolves don’t make legitimate changes, the one thing they do have, budding superstar Love, will surely leave as a free agent.

As the Timberwolves limp to the 50-loss mark and beyond, it becomes a question of which number will be greater at the end of the season: Minnesota's loss total or Kevin Love's double-double streak, which reached a record 52 Wednesday night. Of far greater certainty is the status of coach Kurt Rambis, who appears to be on his way out after only two seasons.

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: The current state of the Minnesota Timberwolves is not Kurt Rambis’ fault.

It’s not Rambis’ fault the Wolves are the one of the NBA’s youngest teams.

It’s not Rambis’ fault the Wolves have one of the league’s lowest payrolls.

It’s not Rambis’ fault Executive David Kahn has given him a wing-heavy roster with one superstar in Kevin Love.

And it’s certainly not Rambis’ fault the Wolves have hedged their bets to Spanish sensation Ricky Rubio, who may or may not join the club two years after being drafted by Kahn in the lottery.

None of that matters, though. The rumor is that the organization is pushing to change the coach. This push is coming because Kahn knows he can’t change the players he accumulated, so he’ll change who sits on his bench.

The Wolves should consider firing Rambis –but only if they are serious about replacing him with a star sideline boss like, say, Mike Brown. Reports indicate they’re looking at an assistant with the Milwaukee Bucks, Kelvin Sampson.

Sampson may eventually turn out to be a good head coach. However, the Wolves need a guy with legitimate experience as an NBA head coach. Not a guy who needs time to learn on the job.

Gambling on a rookie head coach will likely produce the same results of fifty loss seasons and annual reservations at the draft lottery in New Jersey.

HoopsVibe’s Very Quick Call: On the surface, it doesn’t sound realistic –Kevin Love joining Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook with the upstart Oklahoma City Thunder.

Here are two facts about Sam Presti, the Thunder’s lead executive, resident whiz kid, and one of the up-and coming suits in pro sports.

First, after making his bones with the San Antonio Spurs, Presti has rebuilt the Thunder through astute drafting, collecting undervalued assets, and maintaining fiscal sanity. He’s ready to use some of these excess chips to put his club over-the-top with a significant trade and/or signing.

Second, that may mean trying to bring the league’s leading rebounder to Oklahoma City. After all, Presti has a plan for every situation and scenario, and knows how well Love would complement Durant, Westbrook, and the raw Serge Ibaka.

Right now, the Minnesota Timberwolves and Love seem connected. The country strong post has given the lowly Wolves an identity for the first time since you-know-who was dealt to the Boston Celtics.

These two are far from married, though.

Love may be having a fine season; however, he’s not untouchable. He has shown little interest in inking a long-term extension with the Wolves. His relationship with Coach Kurt Rambis is touch-and-go.

Bottom line: Love wants to win now. No more waiting; no more rebuilding. He knows he won’t win championships in The Frozen Tundra of Sota.

While it isn’t likely, Love to the Thunder isn’t impossible. It makes some sense. For now, that will keep us talking.